Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) | RFA CA 20 035

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA CA 20 035

The grant opportunity "Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" (Funding Opportunity Number RFA-CA-20-035) is a National Institutes of Health funding announcement under the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services focused on reducing tobacco-related illness and death among people living with HIV (PLWH) in the United States. It is built around the idea that cigarette smoking remains a major, preventable driver of morbidity and mortality in this population, and that more tailored, better-implemented cessation approaches are needed to improve quit rates and long-term health outcomes. The FOA supports research that directly involves PLWH and produces findings that can be used to strengthen real-world smoking cessation efforts for this group.

A central aim of the announcement is to encourage studies that optimize smoking cessation treatment by rigorously testing interventions that are already evidence-based and/or by adapting those interventions so they work better for PLWH. The announcement explicitly highlights interventions that combine behavioral counseling and pharmacotherapy, reflecting the broader evidence that multi-component approaches often outperform single-component strategies. While the main focus is cigarette smoking cessation, the FOA allows projects to address dual or poly tobacco product use when that work is integrated into a cigarette cessation intervention. In practice, that means applicants can incorporate issues like concurrent use of cigars, smokeless tobacco, or e-cigarettes if doing so helps achieve cigarette abstinence and addresses how tobacco use patterns actually occur among participants.

The research scope is not limited to clinical treatment comparisons alone. The FOA also invites work examining behavioral and sociocultural factors that are linked to smoking among PLWH, such as stress, stigma, mental health and substance use comorbidities, social networks, access to healthcare, and structural barriers that shape tobacco use and quitting success. Another stated priority is addressing smoking-related health disparities within PLWH, recognizing that PLWH are not a single homogeneous group and that outcomes may differ across subgroups based on race and ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, geography, and other factors. Applicants are expected to take this heterogeneity seriously and design research that can clarify which approaches work best, for whom, and under what conditions.

A key requirement is that proposed projects include prospective, comparative evaluations of the intervention or interventions being studied. In other words, the work must be forward-looking and designed to compare outcomes across conditions or strategies, rather than being purely observational or descriptive. The comparative evaluation must assess cigarette smoking cessation outcomes among current cigarette smokers, including sustained abstinence, which signals an emphasis on durable quitting rather than short-term reductions or brief point-prevalence outcomes alone. The "Clinical Trial Optional" designation indicates that applicants may propose a clinical trial if it fits the science, but the mechanism does not force every application into a trial design; the essential point is that the research must include a prospective comparison that can inform intervention effectiveness.

From an administrative and funding standpoint, this is an R01 grant mechanism, categorized as discretionary funding and aligned with health and education activity areas. The opportunity lists CFDA numbers 93.279, 93.307, and 93.393, and anticipates making around three awards. The award ceiling is $500,000, indicating the maximum award amount specified in the opportunity materials. The announcement was created on June 10, 2020, with an original closing date of September 4, 2020. Eligibility is broad and includes many organization types that commonly conduct health research: federal recognized tribal governments and tribal organizations, state and local governments, public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status, for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), small businesses, and other entities as clarified in the full eligibility text.

Overall, this FOA is designed to move beyond general smoking cessation approaches and generate practical, evidence-driven strategies that better fit the needs and circumstances of PLWH. The emphasis on testing and adapting proven interventions, examining the social and behavioral context of tobacco use, and measuring sustained abstinence through prospective comparisons reflects a strong focus on producing actionable results that can reduce tobacco-related disparities and improve long-term health outcomes in HIV care settings and communities.

• The Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health in the education, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Improving Smoking Cessation Interventions among People Living with HIV (R01 Clinical Trial Optional)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.279, 93.307, 93.393.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 10, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 04, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 3 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for RFA CA 20 035

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: